Episode 7

"Evelyn Amaris"

We had moved away from the nature reserve and the railway track, yet I didn't anticipate that we would be much further from Varun territory than expected, or perhaps I was lost! Driving with my son in my arms is no easy task... Not only do I have to drive slowly, but I also use the same hand to steer and shift gears. I must also stop to feed him and change his diaper.

I'm close to giving up; it's raining heavily, and I'm certain that I'm lost. I've turned down several paths to no avail, driving in circles for hours and now the fuel gauge is on empty. Now, I really don't know what to do; I'm not even sure if trying to find him was a wise decision... Because of the storm, I drove straight for a while longer, adjacent to a forest, and finally, I pulled over next to a tree, deciding to wait for the rain to ease, hoping for clearer visibility.

After a few seconds of idling, my son cradled in my arms, I was nearly dozing off when I heard footsteps and several loud howls... I remained alert and scanned the surroundings, trying to discern any sights. It's not any of my father's pack, it must be from... My son had fallen asleep after feeding, so I laid him on the backseat and wrapped his clothes around him, just as before.

The footsteps were drawing closer and after ensuring my baby would be fine, I opened the car door and stepped out, the rain instantly soaking me, streaming down my face, the water icy, sending shivers through my body... Yet, I saw nothing.

"You’re a long way from your pack, sweetheart!" I turned back and glimpsed a man approaching, adorned with tattoos across his “chest, arm.”

Behind him, I saw several werewolves, still in wolf form, advancing towards me, and as the man came closer, he placed his hand on the car, trying to see inside, then circled around to stand in front of me, his tattoos matching those I’d seen on Varun – they must be part of his group.

"I need to speak with the alpha!" I said to him, striving not to appear intimidated.

"Oh! That won't be necessary, he’s got more important things to do," he replied, drenched and wearing only dark shorts, giving me a look that was anything but friendly.

"Please, I need to speak with Varun. My car is almost out of gas, and I have nowhere else to go," I pleaded while wiping water from my face, as everyone present was completely drenched.

The huge wolves stood still behind this hostile man, who showed no reaction other than indifference.

"There’s nothing I can do for you! Find your own pack, they should help you..." He smiled at me before signaling the wolves, who then rose as humans again.

I surveyed each of them, praying Varun might be among them, but to my disappointment, he wasn’t...

"Get out of here!" He got closer, making me back up against the car, his body nearly touching mine, his face inches from mine, without actually making contact – "Before we make you leave by force!"

"Please, I have nowhere to turn! My cellphone’s out of battery…" I said, forced into the plea for the sake of my son, the cellphone battery had run out because I'd forgotten his charger at my father's home.

“To not seem cruel," he glanced back at one of the men, then continued, "Get her a charger, fast!"

I watched him smile, and turning around, he leapt into the air, transforming into a brown wolf and disappearing into the forest. I said nothing more, just felt my tears mix with the falling rain... As the rain lessened and about twenty minutes later, one guy came back with a charger in hand and passed it to the first man who then extended it toward me.

"Now leave!"

I took the charger and, saying nothing more, got back into the car soaking wet, noticing my son stirring but not crying. The group stood in front of my car, and with great care, I started the engine and reversed, executing a calm maneuver, and turned the car around, driving away very slowly because my son was on the back seat… But I didn't get far before the car ran out of fuel.

I fought back tears! I hooked up my cellphone to the car charger... As I was turning it on, I sneezed three times in a row and my son started crying, I left the cellphone on the seat and picked up a piece of clothing from the back seat, dressed him, and sneezed again... Ready, I picked up my son, thankful to see the cellphone had turned on.

I put my baby to breastfeed and called my sister.

"Evelyn, thank God! I called you several times, sister. For three days…" She answered, sounding very worried.

"Aisha, I need to find Varun!" I said while sneezing once more.

"Why? What’s happened, sister? How are you? Where are you? Mom is nearly out of her mind with worry," she inquired, clearly concerned. I couldn't scare her like this.

"Aisha, don’t worry, we’re fine... I just need to find Varun!"

"Hold on sister, I'll figure something out... I'll call you back soon!"

I agreed and we hung up. I’m not sure what she'll do, but I feel too weak to worry about that right now... The rain is stopping, and I'm very hungry; my stomach is hurting, maybe if I don’t think about it the pain will fade... My son let go of my breast, crying, then latched on again; this time I gave him the other one, and he settled. I gently squeezed the breast he was nursing from and, to my horror, realized my milk was drying up. Before I could become distraught, my sister called back.

"Evelyn, I’ve sent you his number by text message!"

"How did you get his contact, Aisha?" I asked, curious.

"I’ve got a contact there. Just don’t tell Dad," she said, chuckling nervously...

We said goodbye, and I ended the call. Watching my son nurse what little milk I had left, I checked for Varun's number that my sister had sent... I copied it from the message and pasted it into the dialer, took a deep breath, and pressed to call...

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